USING GEOINFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TO DEVELOP A VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT MODEL IN NATURAL DISASTER-PRONE AREAS

Abstract

Natural disasters are the consequences of natural hazards. The devastation of any natural disaster might get intensified by the unplanned rapid urbanization in the hazard-prone areas. Although natural hazards are inevitable, scientific knowledge and technology can be used to minimize or even control the damage. Geoinformation technology, which includes Geographic Information Systems, Global Positioning System, Satellite Communication, Remote Sensing, and World Wide Web, can be used in natural disaster assessment, prevention, and mitigation. The technology is usually applied in three temporal stages of disaster cycles: before, during, and after. The author discusses the geospatial data needs for various disaster analyses and presents a model to perform the vulnerability assessment in single- or multi-hazard prone areas.